Stuck Between Heaven and Earth
by Hoshi-star
Summary: Mereko is given the choice to go and live on earth, on one condition. What will her choice be? A Mer/Itzu all the way!


Stuck Between Heaven and Earth

I glided gently up to the large branch of the tree. I closed my wings and sat down on the branch, trying not to slip off. I repositioned my feet and put my arms securely around my knees. _Stupid Mereko, anyone could find you here._

I gazed up at the beautiful sky of our spirit world and thought about the equally beautiful sky on the earth. _It's not fair! I was the only one who didn't get to stay on earth!_ I grabbed some leaves and threw them to the ground below.

"Hey! What did I do, Me-chan?" Izumi's voice came from below. I gave an irritated sigh and watched him fly up to my branch. Izumi wasn't as irritating as he used to be, but still, he was just as much a pest as he used to be.

"I knew I'd find you here, Me-chan." He said, his golden hair glinting from the oncoming sunlight behind him. This made him seem so cute, but I shook the thought out of my head. _All he's done is cause you trouble, Mereko. You know better than that!_

"What do you want Izumi? " I growled, looking at the scenery instead of him. Looking into his eyes was always a bad idea. You could never think straight, because they sort of sucked you in, like a black hole.

"Don't give me that, Me-chan. I didn't mean to upset you." Izumi replied, his voice actually sounding somewhat sincere for once. _What are you thinking Mereko! Izumi never cared for you, just like Takuto and every other guy you've ever liked. It's pointless!_

I sighed and looked up at him. He had this smile on this face that made him seem so young and carefree, when on the inside, he was still that pessimist that I resented. "Listen, Izumi. You only speak to me if I'm needed. Just tell me already because I'm not in the mood." I growled, looking at my feet.

Izumi laughed. "Me-chan, you're so sour all the time!" He sighed and brushed off his golden colored shirt. "The chief wants to speak to you."

I sighed. _Of course she did. That's all he come to talk to me about. Couldn't she find someone else to get me?_

Izumi held out his hands, and I just peered at them, like they had seven fingers instead of five. He noticed my stare and laughed. "Come on, Me-chan. Get up."

I placed my gloved hands in his, and he pulled me to my feet. My left foot slipped off the branch, sending me down towards the ground. _Oh crud!_ I closed my eyes and waited to feel the impact of the harden ground below.

I didn't feel the hard sensation. Instead, I felt the strong arms and warmness of someone or something. I opened up my eyes and noticed that Izumi's face was peering at mine. "You okay, Me-chan?" He asked, looking into my eyes.

Crud, I was trapped by his eyes. "Yeah.." I finally got my brain back, and sighed. "Do you mind putting me down now. Izumi?"

He leaned closer to my ear. "Why? Do I frighten you or something, Me-chan?" My skin turned to goose bumps and I let out a heavy breath.

Izumi laughed and put me down on my feet. I adjusted my bunny ears and straightened out my outfit. Izumi smiled at me. "Come on, Me-chan." He flapped his wings and flew off.

"Idiot.." I mumbled under my breath, as I flew off after him.

I made it to the chief's office in a little bit, and I saw her waiting at the door. "You're late, Mereko and Izumi." She said on her usual tone of voice.

I stepped in, and expected her to follow me. Instead, she stared at Izumi. "This involves you too, Izumi. Come in."

I saw him shrug and step into the room and stand next to me. The chief entered the room and closed the door behind her. "This is very important, you two."

"What is it, Boss?" Izumi asked, plainly bored.

She sighed. "I'm glad that you asked, Izumi." She looked at Izumi, then at me.

_What was she stalling for? Hurry up already!_

"Patience is a virtue, Mereko." She replied, reading my mind. I gawked a bit, but then looked down. She cleared her throat and continued. "It seems that fate is on your side."

Izumi crossed his arms. "What does that mean exactly?" I nodded. _What in the world was going on here?_

"You have the choice of going back to earth and living as human beings once more. There is one thing though."

I let out a happy scream, not even paying attention to the last part of her conversation. _I could be a human again!!_

"What's the catch?" Izumi asked, making me stop.

"You two have to get married." Boss said, making it sound so simple.

I looked over at Izumi and he looked over at me. My mouth hung open for a while, but then I closed it. _I have to marry Izumi?!?! Why?!?!_

"The reason why, Mereko, is because your fates are intertwined that way. There is nothing that I can do about it. Either accept your fate, or never live on the earth." She said with a bit of irritation.

It was quiet for a moment, until Izumi finally broke the silence. "I'll take up your offer. I always loved Me-chan." He replied, giving me a smile.

The chief just nodded and turned to me. "Well, Mereko? What do you think?"

I couldn't hold it in any longer. "I think it's a stupid idea!!" With that, I burst out of the office and flew off to the tree by myself.

I sat at the bottom of the tree, crying. _This was all so stupid! I have to marry Izumi to go and live on earth! Who would want to marry Izumi anyway?! _I threw some dirt at the ground, covering my red gloves in a brown dusty substance.

I pulled my knees up and sat in a little ball, thinking about what I should do, when I felt someone in front of me. I looked up and there stood Izumi.

"I knew I'd find you here, Me-chan." He replied, sitting down next to me.

I wiped my eyes, but the tears kept flowing. Instinctively, I placed my head on Izumi's lap and cried even more. He stroked my long pink hair and sighed. "Do you want to why I want to return to the earth?"

I nodded and continued to cry, not as hard. "My mother beat me when I was about six, because I was like my father. It was so horrible, but for a while I could deal with it. Then, one day while she and I were out shopping, I ran onto the tracks of an oncoming train. I never got to really live my life out, even past my childhood years."

I gasped. _Izumi had such a bad past. Worse than mine. This is why he's so lonely and pessimistic all the time. _"I'm sorry." I murmured.

He laughed. "Why are you sorry, Me-chan? It wasn't your fault. How did you become a Shinigami?"

I sighed. "I was Mitsuki's grandmother's, Fuzuki, best friend. We both fell in love with a violinist, but he ended up falling in love with Fuzuki. I was upset when I found out they got engaged and ran home. My fiancé was waiting there for me, and he sexually harassed me. I ran out just in time, and slit both of my wrists and bled to death."

I started crying again, and Izumi pulled me closer. He stroked my head gently and the tears slowly faded away. _I feel so helpless. Why am I telling Izumi all of this?_

"I'm sorry, Me-chan. Love is a hard thing to get, isn't it?" Izumi whispered.

I nodded and sat up. I was about to wipe my eyes on my gloves, when I noticed how dusty they were. Frustrated, I threw off my gloves and wiped the tears on my face with my pale hands. I put my hands in my lap, and Izumi put one of his on top of mine.

I looked up at him and he gave me smile. "I promise to make you happy, Me-chan. You need to be on earth, happy and with Ta-kun and Mi-ki. What do you say?"

_Really Mereko, that's not a bad idea. Izumi was your first love after you died. Plus, it would be better to have_ _someone you like on earth with you. _

"I'll marry you, Izumi. Promise me that you'll never hurt me." I murmured.

Izumi squeezed my hand. "Of course, Me-chan."

My heart started to beat quickly and I couldn't help but smile. Izumi nodded and got up. "Come on, Me-chan. The chief wants to hear our answer as soon as possible."

I nodded and got up. I put my gloves back on and flew off with Izumi.

Boss was already waiting at the office for us. She nodded knowingly when we stopped in front of her. "Come to an agreement, I hope?"

Izumi nodded and went into the room, with that attitude of his. I sighed and followed him inside the room.

"We want to get married." Izumi said plainly, as she sat down.

She nodded and gave a wave of her hand. A box popped up in front of her and it opened. Inside the box were two shining, golden bands.

"When you put these on, you'll lose your powers as Shinigami. You'll be transported to earth also. Are you two ready?"

I turned my gaze to Izumi, who gave me a quick smile. "Yes." I replied as Izumi nodded.

Boss smiled. "Good. Before you leave, Izumi take this as a , let's say, wedding present." She handed him a folded piece of paper, which Izumi looked at. He smiled and put the paper into the pocket on his black vest.

I was about to ask, when Izumi shook his head. Boss sighed. "Well, I now pronounce you two husband and wife."

The rings floated towards us and landed on my ring finger. The power I had immediately surged out of my body, and my bunny ears vanished in a cloud of smoke. My somewhat skimpy red laced outfit was turned into a pink mid length dress. My gloves disappeared and the office started to disappear.

"Izumi?!" I cried looking over at him. His doggy-like hat had left, along with the wings. He put his arm around me as the world on earth began to appear around us.

We fell into a park, deep in the wooded area. My legs felt weak underneath me, so I fell onto the soft grass beneath me.

"You okay, Me-chan?" Izumi asked, his face etched with a bit of worry.

"Yeah." I said, feeling the grass for the first time for a while. I smiled and let out a happy squeal. Izumi laughed and touched the grass as well. "It's good to be back, isn't it?"

I nodded. "Always." He helped me to my feet and pulled the piece of paper back out of his vest pocket. "What's that Izumi?"

"We got an apartment. I'm just trying to figure out where it is, Me-chan. " He said, scrutinizing the piece of paper.

I took a look and immediately knew where the street was from here. I grabbed Izumi's hand and pulled him with me to the right. "Come on Izumi! I know where it is!" I said confidently.

We walked down a few streets, our hands linked. I found the street pretty easily, but it was on the other side of the city, so it was a quite long walk. We finally found our apartment complex and found the manager outside waiting for us.

"Are you Mereko and Izumi Rio?" He asked, peering at us.

"Yes, we are." Izumi responded, while I just nodded.

The manager smiled and led us to our apartment. "My wife was glad to have another married lady in the apartment complex, so she fixed up your things and even made you two dinner. We hope you enjoy living here." He handed Izumi a key and we both thanked him wholeheartedly.

Izumi opened the door to our apartment and stopped me. He came behind me and picked me up bridal-style. I giggled and he went into our new apartment. He put me down in the kitchen and this wonderful aroma filled my nostrils.

"Hungry, Me-chan?" Izumi asked. I nodded and made my way to the table. Izumi pulled out my chair and I sat down. We ate dinner and talked about the things we wanted to do now that we were on earth. Of course, I wanted to see Mitsuki and Takuto.

"I want to find my mother's grave. Did you know I was the one they sent to take her soul?"

I dropped my chopsticks and looked at him. He shrugged and handed them to me again. "I never forgave her, but now I feel like now I should."

I nodded. "I think that you should do that Izumi. I'm proud of you."

"My wife is proud of me? I'm glad, Me-chan." He replied, making me blush.

We finished eating and Izumi cleaned up the table. I went and looked around our apartment. We had a pretty living room and a one room bedroom. That scared me. The images of my ex-fiancé flashed in my brain. I fel to my knees, trying to get the images out of my head.

"Mereko? What's wrong?" Izumi asked from behind me. I wiped the tears forming from my eyes and stood up. "It's fine." I said, looking at the darkness gathering around us.

"You look tired, Me-chan. Let's go rest." Izumi said, putting his hands on my shoulders.

I nodded and went into our bedroom. I changed in the bathroom and found Izumi sitting on the bed, waiting.

I sat down next to him and gave him a smile. "I love you, Me-chan." Izumi replied, coming closer to me.

"I love you too, Izumi." I said, placing my lips on his. Now, I could truly feel the love that Izumi felt for me. He wasn't hiding anything, and now I didn't have to feel scared when he touched me.

**OWARI (The End!)**


End file.
